Norman Macintosh Memorial Fellowship in Accounting
Established in May 2015 as an initiative of Dr. Cheryl S. McWatters (Queen’s Business PhD, 1991) and with financial support from Smith School of Business Faculty and PhD alumni, in memory of Professor Emeritus Norman B. Macintosh. Professor Macintosh’s academic career spanned more than 40 years at Queen’s where he established himself as a preeminent scholar in Accounting. This fellowship is awarded on the basis of academic excellence to funding-eligible PhD students in the Smith School of Business in the Accounting field. The applicant must be nominated by the Accounting faculty. Selection will be made by the PhD/MSc Awards Adjudication Committee.
Latest Recipient
Guillaume Picard-Lalonde
Where is your hometown?
I grew up in Laval, Quebec, which is a suburb city of Montreal.
Why did you choose Smith School of Business/Queen’s?
I decided to come to Smith School of Business due to the excellent reputation and quality of the program, the diversity of research methods that were taught there such as qualitative, experimental, and archival types of research, and most importantly, the amazing relationship and link I have with my supervisors Bertrand Malsch and Erica Pimentel.
What has been your favourite experience at Queen’s so far?
My most important memory so far is definitely the MSc graduation ceremony. It was an important time to reflect on everything that we’ve accomplished over the past year and how much we have learned throughout this journey with our colleagues and fellow professors. It was a great time to connect with those who left after the MSc.
What are your aspirations after graduation?
After graduation, I would like to go back to Montreal and work at a research university to continue the research projects that I started during my PhD at Smith. I would like to bring all the insights I learned through the programs to those universities, while keeping in touch with all the people and connections I have made throughout the program.
What is one interesting fact about you?
Aside from our shared interest in qualitative accounting research, I also share Norman B. Macintosh’s love and dedication of sport. Norman B. Macintosh was even inducted into the University of Alberta’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1997. I am passionate about running and love running around campus with the university’s cross country team athletes. Norman B. Macintosh could often be seen on campus in his tennis attire, much like me in my running outfit when I need a well-deserved break from research.
Research Overview
Guillaume’s research explores how Chartered Professional Accountants (CPA) in Canada navigate continuing professional development (CPD) requirements, going beyond the mandatory 40 hours of training to examine the strategic, symbolic and institutional dimensions of CPD. His work highlights the tensions between genuine learning and compliance, investigating how CPAs, firms and regulatory bodies shape CPD practices to serve varying interests. Drawing on 34 interviews with auditors, CPD facilitators and CPA Order representatives, this empirical study sheds light on how CPA engage with their CPD requirements.
Aside from CPD, Guillaume’s research interests are broad and include the implications of popular culture’s representation of accountants, the impact of audit quality when the auditee does not have audit work experience, and the impact of digitalisation on the meaning of being a professional. His thesis is currently being supervised by Bertrand Malsch and Erica Pimentel.